GARDEIN MEATLESS MEATBALLS

This is such a no-brainer. Steve sautéed some mushroom, onion and green pepper, then added a homemade marinara sauce we had frozen. Then added fresh garlic and basil.

Open the package of frozen meatballs, add to simmering sauce, cover and cook about 15 minutes or till heated all the way through.

Serve over pasta or on a sandwich. We chose burger buns. Excellent.

People have claimed for years that a meatless meatball could not be made without egg whites. Gardein proved them wrong. Take note MorningStar!

The fennel flavor was great. The meatballs actually textured more like an Italian sausage meatball, which was fine with us. They actually textured like they had bits of grizzle in them. Some will like that feature, some may not.

Update: The second time I tried these meatballs, I didn’t like them. Then I realized that I had cooked them too long in the sauce. They were tough and dry.

So I bought them again and this time thawed them before adding to the heated sauce. Then I cooked them, covered, just till heated through.

Not all animal-free meats cook up the same. Some, when cooked too long fall apart. Others when cooked too long toughen up. These toughen up and dry out when cooked too long.